


Cornish Pixies

by mouseinthemidnight



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Chamber of Secrets, F/M, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-09 20:51:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13489533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mouseinthemidnight/pseuds/mouseinthemidnight
Summary: Perhaps it was true to your return to Hogwarts had occurred around the same time as Lockhart's had. But this did not make it an elaborate plan devised strictly out of desire to be around that braggart.





	Cornish Pixies

_“Ah, I see. Trying to get closer to me, eh? Very clever.”_

 

Perhaps it was true that you had returned to Hogwarts to teach around the same time that Lockhart had returned from his journeys. But this did not make it an elaborate plan devised strictly out of desire to be around that braggart.

 

You let out a scoff and clutched your things to your chest tightly. Gilderoy Lockhart was renowned throughout the wizarding world for his swashbuckling exploits, all of which he had recounted in his dozens of books. Wizards and witches alike envied his abilities and were captivated by his charm. Every one of them seemed to bow and swoon at the mere sight of him. 

 

Every one except you. You found it difficult to believe he had done any of those things.

 

__“Order of Merlin, Third Class_ _ __,_ _ __Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five times winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award. But I don’t talk about that. I didn’t get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at h_ _ __im_ _ __.”_ _

 

A cringe seized up your shoulders and devolved into a shudder. He had listed out all his accomplishments so many times, you could hear the words playing out perfectly in your head. His smooth voice accentuated each vowel and each consonant with elegance. He turned gracefully, giving a gentle flip of his golden hair, and flashed a cheesy smile meant especially for you. You found your knees weakening at the sight of it.

 

You had to catch yourself before you nearly tripped over a wandering Hufflepuff student. He sent you a furrowed brow of confusion as he passed, and you couldn’t blame him. Why on earth would you even be thinking twice about __anyone__  as pompous and flamboyant as __Gilderoy Lockhart__? He was trouble, and there was no doubt about that. You resolved to do everything within your power to avoid contact with him, as much as possible.

 

You shook your head, managing to rid yourself of the bothersome thoughts for the time being, and moved onward to the class you would be teaching in a few minutes. Luckily you had left your office early enough. The hallways here at Hogwarts were long, and it almost felt as if the buildings had changed since your days as a student. Said days were now nearly a decade in the past, and you’d nearly forgotten your way.

 

As you scurried down the hallway, you passed the doorway to a certain classroom and heard bizarre scuffling and shouting emanating from within. You felt your stomach do a flip-flop, wondering what on earth sort of class could be going on in there to have caused such a ruckus. You took a glance down towards the end of the hallway, knowing you should be on your way. Yet, you couldn’t resist creeping closer to the door and risking a glance inside the classroom.

 

What you saw past the cracked-open door made your jaw drop instantly. Half the students had leapt from their seats and onto their tables, swiping their thick textbooks about frantically. The other half of the students was scrambling chaotically across the floors, ducking under tables and clawing for an escape out the locked windows.

 

Tiny blue-skinned creatures were flitting about all over the room. Their wings flapped furiously, filling the room collectively with a disturbing humming sound. Devilish sneers curled their lips as they hurled objects about, rent pages from books, and harassed students.

 

“Cornish pixies!!” You gasped.

 

“ _ _Freshly caught__  cornish pixies,” corrected an all-too familiar voice. Gilderoy Lockhart sent the typical cheesy smile up at you. He stood below the stairs that spiraled in their descent from the doorway. Beside him on the desk was a large, empty cage, presumably from whence the pixies had been released. “Just giving the class a good lesson in defense. Not to worry. They’ll be able to round them up quickly; they’re only pixies.”

 

“Stop this at once!” You spat, unable to think of any other response, despite desiring deeply to bash him over the head.

 

“Ah. Perhaps you are right. Things do seem to be getting a bit out of hand.” His teal eyes flickered anxiously as you admonished him, but he kept the confident smirk on his face. “However! It is nothing that I, Gilderoy Lockhart, cannot handle.” From his long sleeves, he produced his wand, and gave it an enthusiastic flick or two. “ _ _Pesk__ _ _ipiksi__ _ _pesternomi__!”

 

A pixie whizzed by and ruthlessly yanked the wand from his hand. It joined its gaggle of cohorts in proceeding to levitate to the ceiling and use his wand for the purpose of breaking chains which held a dragon skeleton aloft. The bones came crashing to the floor and shattering into ancient bits.

 

Students who had barely ducked out of harm’s way screeched and struggled up the stairs, flying out the door. Gilderoy followed them, and you spotted a desperate expression of cowardice muddling his usually charismatic features as he moved past you. At long last, a student, whose name you recalled to be Hermione Granger, stood boldly to her feet amidst the tumult and gave a fed-up swish of her wand.

 

“ _ _Immobulus!__ ”

 

The pixies’ antics were brought to an immediate halt as Hermione’s spell rendered them immobile. Finally able to make it past the front of the classroom, you moved through and scanned the crowd of students.

 

“Is anyone hurt?”

 

A few mutters came from a corner here and there, but none of the students seemed damaged with more than a bruise or few. Neville Longbottom had somehow been lifted up to the chandelier and left hanging by the fabric of his robes, but a skillful spell from you soon set him on solid ground once more. That left one last problem to deal with.

 

“Lockhart.”

 

Again, you moved down the corridors of the school, distracted with thoughts of the boastful wizard, but this time the thoughts would not serve to render you weak at the knee. If anything, you were empowered by unbridled rage at the behaviour of this __immature__ , __irresponsible, narcissistic, asinine son of a--__

__

“(Y/N)!?” Lockhart squeaked, as he leapt a good foot into the air at the sound of you slamming the door to his office open. His brassy robes swished about him frantically. “I, er, hello.”

 

“What the heck was that??” You stormed directly up to his desk and slammed both hands on the wooden surface. “You could have killed someone!”

 

“Ah… ah…” His teal eyes darted here and there, obviously checking the perimeter for a plausible escape. They shimmered with trepidation of meeting your own blazing eyes. “That’s… a bit of an exaggeration, don’t you think?”

 

“You want to know what __I__  think?” You gave the desk another enraged slap and moved to the opposite side of it where he cowered, squaring your shoulders and rolling up your sleeves. “ _ _I__ think you are out of your bloody mind. I haven’t the __faintest__  what Professor Dumbledore had been thinking when he decided to let __you__  come back here and teach, but __I__  will __not__  stand for this insanity! Those are __my__ students, just as much as they are yours, and I __refuse__  to stand by and let you do that to them.”

 

Lockhart could only gape down at you for the following moment or few, eyebrows raised well aloft in astonishment at your sudden tenacity. Then, an amused smile spread over his chiseled jaw. “… well, now, Professor (Y/N)… I never imagined you to have such a strong spirit.” The trepidation dissipated from his eyes and was replaced with a flirtatious twinkle. “I’m impressed.”

 

You would have struck him right across that smile on the spot, had his words not sent butterflies into a frenzy within your stomach. You realized you were now in direct proximity to him, standing on your tiptoes, staring him right in the face. If he had equipped any more audacity than that which was in his smile, he could have easily taken you in his arms and kissed you. Fire set ablaze across your cheekbones, and you backed away from him quickly.

 

“How dare you.” You mumbled. “How dare you speak that way. You’ve no idea what you’ve done, have you?”

 

Gilderoy’s smile faded just a bit, and he seemed somewhat guilty to have elicited that reaction from you. “Oh, come now, my dear… it wasn’t my intention to upset you.”

 

“I am __not__  upset.” You turned away from him. “And don’t call me ‘dear’.” The pet name sent your heartbeat into a gallop. You did your best to remind yourself that it was merely the same way he addressed every other female.

 

“Don’t be like that…” He risked a small step forward, though clearly took heed not to get too close to you. “I didn’t realize this would cause such distress.”

 

“You didn’t __realize__?” You whirled about to face him again, aghast at the pure obliviousness that blended into each eloquent word. “What the heck did you __think__  would happen?”

 

“... I suppose… I didn’t __think__  at all, did I?” Gilderoy responded softly.

 

“Hah.” You scoffed at the understatement, looking out the window in frustration.

 

“... darling…” He reached a hand to brush your shoulder gently. “I apologize.”

 

Your eyes widened at the touch and the name he called you. He gazed down at you, tenderness behind the teal. A few golden waves fell over his strong forehead. For a moment, you were mesmerized.

 

“I never meant at all to cause distress… least of all for you, my dear (Y/N).” He went on, his satiny voice lowering to nearly a whisper. “I would never want to disappoint you so. Perhaps I am not worthy of your forgiveness, but I ask it of you, as well as of any way that I am able to make it up to you.”

 

“I...” Words would barely escape your throat, which had been left constricted in a gasp. You searched his face, his eyes, his body, with urgence, for any sign or cue that he was being sincere. You didn’t consider it to be too bold of an assumption that he was not above using flattery to weasel his way out of a tight situation. “I… suppose… it’s… alright, then…” You could only avert your eyes to your shoes, in shock that you had accepted the apology.

 

“Rubbish.” Gilderoy didn’t seem flustered in the slightest, by comparison. “It’s not alright until I set it right. Please, let me do something to account for my mistake. I could come to your office after classes. Perhaps there is some paperwork with which I could assist?”

 

“Paperwork.” Gilderoy Lockhart coming to your office? Preposterous. You would rather share a cup of tea with a Dementor. “Y-yes, I guess I do have a lot of paperwork I haven’t caught up on, since I came back here…”  Your heart sped up faster than ever.

 

“I knew it.” The wizard beamed, slightly bouncing on his toes. “Never fear. With the help of yours truly, you shan’t have paperwork for months to come!” He turned back to his desk and resumed decorating its surface with portraits of himself. “It’s settled. I shall see you after class this evening!”

 

“This evening…” You muttered out, at a loss for any explanation of how things had come to this.

 

“Say…” Lockhart paused, and cast the clock on the adjacent wall a glance. “If you don’t mind my saying so, (Y/N), I believe you have a class to teach. It should be starting right about now.”

 

“Oh!” You rushed from his side and away to the door, your robes flying about you. “I’d nearly forgotten!”

 

Behind you, you heard that braggart let out a melodious laugh, and, oddly enough, not in a way out of amusement towards your forgetfulness. Rather, the laugh seemed to express barely-suppressed eagerness for the time the two of you would soon be sharing.

 

And, as you stumbled into your designated classroom, you found it difficult to keep your thoughts organized and focused on the lesson. Maybe you were looking forward to spending time with him, too.

 

Perhaps it was true that returning to Hogwarts around the same time as Lockhart had never been an elaborate plan devised in order to get close to him. But it had been a fortunate coincidence.


End file.
